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Career Readiness Wiki
Welcome to the Career Readiness Wiki Career readiness is not only being eligible to enter postsecondary education, training and the workforce, but also the ability to successfully do the job and continuously acquire additional knowledge and skills necessary to remain successful in an increasingly competitive and global workforce. Career planning involves directing a chosen career pathway. This includes what students should focus on in their secondary schooling years, the postsecondary education or training they will need to do the work they are interested in, and knowledge of what learning and skills will be necessary to remain competitive and capable on a particular career path. Career development and planning is not a new concept. Frank Parsons (1909) introduced the still valid theory that individuals need to develop a clear understanding of self and acquire an in depth knowledge of the workplace in order to succeed in a particular vocation. History Many early theorists agree that career development happens in stages, and simplified models , such as Ginsberg’s three stages of fantasy, exploration and crystallization ( 1911) were expanded into more complex models including Donald Super’s Rainbow theory (1962) which extends the career lifespan into longer periods of transition and continuous maintenance. United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (2010) reports show that between the ages of 18 and 42, today’s worker can expect to hold an average of 11 different jobs. This job change indicates that students will be using job searching, preparation and transition skills throughout their lifetime. Career readiness is not only being eligible to enter postsecondary education, training and the workforce, but also the ability to successfully do the job and continuously acquire additional knowledge and skills necessary to remain successful in an increasingly competitive and global workforce. Career planning involves directing a chosen career pathway. This includes what students should focus on in their secondary schooling years, the postsecondary education or training they will need to do the work they are interested in, and knowledge of what learning and skills will be necessary to remain competitive and capable on a particular career path. Research studies have lead to the evolution of what it means to be career ready in today’s increasingly competitive and globalized job market (Conley, 2010; Sampson, 2013). Eligibility to enter college and the workplace is not an indicator of ability to maintain necessary levels of success as indicated by statistics showing that almost half of high school graduates are consistently not ready for college or the workplace (Carnevale, Smith, & Strohl, 2010). The fact that there are over 11 million jobs available nationwide, but still more than 4 million people out of work indicates a work skills gap that needs to be addressed (Melvin, 2013). What is Career Ready? Career Readiness can be defined as content knowledge, cognitive skills, transition skills (Conley, 2013). It is currently assessed in our educational system by evaluating standardized tests, GPA levels and college testing scores such as the SAT, ACT tests. Accountability measures need to focus on success after high school. A high school diploma is not enough anymore. How successful are they in making the transition to postsecondary education? College readiness is not just a score on an entrance exam. It is not GPA, scores on SAT/ACT. These assessment tools are well established, easy to administer and familiar to the public, but not good indicators of success. Placement tests, college remediation rates and state assessments have all been used to measure college readiness but are hard to quantify consistently (Carnevale, Smith, & Strohl, 2010). Why is Career Readiness Important? Gallup data suggests that the most dominant thought on most peoples’ minds centers on having a good job (Clifton 2012). A good job to most people means one they enjoy, and which offers the earning potential that allows them to live comfortably. The majority of those jobs require some education beyond high school (Carnevale, Smith, & Strohl, 2010a). Students in middle school have gotten the message that they should aspire to continue their education beyond high school. However we are facing an aspirations gap. Out of 100 middle school kids 93% say they want to go to college, 70% graduate from high school, 44% enroll in college, and 26% earn a college degree within 6 years of enrolling. There is a consistent fall off from their original aspirations (Conley, 2011b). Employers reported that 39 percent of high school graduates were not prepared for entry level work, and 45 percent were inadequately prepared for work beyond entry level (Act 2011). Thirty-nine percent of high school graduates said that they were unprepared for college or the workplace. College admissions records show that 53 percent of high school graduates enroll in remedial classes (U.S. Department of Education, 2010). The majority of jobs in the United States require education beyond high school, however less than half of young adults aged 25-34 have a college degree. If this trend continues, employers will struggle to find an educated work force, and our youth will have trouble finding jobs that will cover their basic living expenses (ACT, 2011; Carnevale, Smith, & Strohl, 2010; (USDE 2010). There is a clear need for increased investment in career interventions to fill skill deficits, generate innovation, and jump-start workforce development around the world. Specific emphasis has been placed on the need to better educate and engage youth in problem solving and innovative thinking that goes hand-in-hand with STEM fields. (Long, 2013) Early identification of career pathway goals and interventions has the potential help prepare students to recognize barriers of career uncertainty, methods of exploration, self-assessment of interests, and work-related values with the intent of acquiring a foundation of skills and knowledge for future decision making (Kalchik, 2011). Latest activity Photos and videos are a great way to add visuals to your wiki. Find videos about your topic by exploring Wikia's Video Library. Category:Browse Category:Links